Q. Could you tell me the address of Intelligent Software, and secondly, is it possible for PCN to compile a list of software houses with an address and what type of games they are after?

Also, as I don't program very well, but have three prototype games, could you say whether they only want cassettes or if they are interested in adventure, strategy and arcade type games, and possible board game conversions.

Lastly, I do a lot of writing, and am looking for a computer that can assist me, but most computers are 80x25 lines, whereas A4 paper is about 68 lines. So is it easy to tell the printer to print so many lines down, use new paper with the page number on top, and so on, and do this for 10-15 pages?

A. Dixon, Walsall, West Midlands

A. Intelligent Software is at 21 Store Street, London WC1. The problem with compiling a list of software houses is that it's difficult to keep it up to date, and it's really a very specialised task, too specialised for a general magazine like PCN.

It's not altogether clear what you mean by your next question. Some software houses will take ideas for programs, but it's best to finish off what you're doing, then send them finished tapes. Conversions are generally difficult, as the person who owns the copyright of the game will generally want either to commission someone to convert it or to sell the rights to convert it. Whatever you do, don't go converting games, board or otherwise, without the permission of the owner.

You seem to have totally misunderstood the concept of screen displays. A computer will often display 80 columns by 25 lines at any one time, but all you're doing is printing those lines on the screen, and you can always scroll them up.

Think of a printer as just another sort of display. So an 80-column printer will print 80 columns by as many lines as you've got paper for. Numbering pages simply involves the computer software counting the number of lines that make up a page, sticking a number on it and skipping on to the next page.

If you're looking for a reasonably cheap starter computer that'll allow you to upgrade to word processing, you might like to look at the Commodore 64 or the Amstrad.